None
Research and development of this invention and Application have not been federally sponsored, and no rights are given under any Federal program.
Not Applicable
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the treatment of chipped and/or fractured dental teeth, in general, and to an emergency treatment device for providing at least temporary relief in avoiding possible injurious effects therefrom, in particular.
2. Description of the Related Art
As is well known and understood, studies document that over 50% of the population do not ever treat with a dentist on a regular basis. Studies also shown that even in dental emergencies, large portions of the populace do not seek professional assistance, but attempt to deal with the problem themselves. Even for those who have regular dental appointments, or seek help when a problem arises, many are the times when seeing a dentist, even on an emergency basis, is not feasible. For such instances,pharmacies oftentimes stock items for emergency treatment by the consumer on an individual basisxe2x80x94until such time as a visit to a dentist could be scheduled. Typical of these are the widely available types of remedies to ease and/or deaden the effects of toothache pain.
While such topical pain killers are generally effective, problems often continue where the cause of the discomfort is a chipped and/or fractured tooth. Whereas most dentists regard such situations as ones requiring emergent treatment, many times an availability of the dentist to see a patient just cannot be arranged. Besides the continuing discomfort the patient suffers while waiting to return from a vacation, for example, or if occurring late at night (especially on a weekend), when first seeing the dentist, the chipped and/or fractured tooth can lead to other problemsxe2x80x94such as lacerations of the cheek, lacerations of the tongue, and canker sores. Investigation and analysis of the situation reveals that there generally is nothing available on the market to assist the distressed person in these circumstancesxe2x80x94short of finding a dentist to treat the tooth insult.
As will become clear from the following description, the present invention recognizes the desirability of having a dental instrument, simple enough for a consumer to employ himself/herself, and available for purchase in a pharmacy to deal with the chipped and/or fractured tooth until such time as a dentist can be visited. As will also be seen, the unique dental instrument of the invention follows the recognition that dental enamel is essentially the hardest bone in the body and, therefore, requires an instrument of even greater hardness. As will be understood from the description that follows, such a consumer usable dental instrument intended for pharmacy availability includes a handle having first and second opposing ends, along with a metal bur at at least one of the ends including a diamond-chip coating; and of given shape and angulation to fit within the mouth in smoothing the dental enamel of the affected tooth, wherever it may be positioned. In a preferred embodiment, the metal bur along with its diamond-chip coating is secured with a plastic handle at each of its opposing ends, and exhibits a hardness characteristic sufficient to smooth the dental enamel when being filed across it. In one such construction, with a diamond-ship coating of fine grain, the metal bur may be fused to the plastic handle in manufacture, or may alternatively include a shank to be fitted within the handle endxe2x80x94the diamond-chip coated smoothing surface being then located at the remote end of the shank. When included within a blister pack for sale, the dental instrument of the invention becomes readily purchasable from a pharmacy as an emergency treatment device to smooth the damaged tooth, in providing temporary relief until the dentist can be seen.
As will be appreciated, a diamond-chip coating of fine grain offers the advantage of allowing an enamel filing without skipping over the myriad of its surfaces, while employing different shapes and/or angulation to the bur enables the most efficient smoothing in the mouth wherever the chipped and/or fractured tooth might be.